How much should I pay a house/cat sitter?
 

We are going to Europe for 2 weeks and will be having one of my co-workers housesitting and looking after our 2 cats. We will stock the house with food and get her something special on our trip. How should I pay her? I should also mention that this is a win/win situation for both of us as she is getting away from her roommate for 2 weeks, but I don't want to be a cheap.

I can only speak about pet sitters. In my area they charge $15 a visit. I have two dogs & two cats which requires three visits a day or $45/day.

I have a neighbor who watches my animals for me. I calculate what I would have to pay the regular sitter & then I pay my neighbor half of that.

That way I don't have to feel like I am imposing on her and she can say no any time.

In my area they charged about $25 a day for our little cat.
I would say that $20 a day sounds right..personally, I have found that a person that you can trust with your home and pet is priceless and I would never be cheap or worry that I was overpaying..( not that you are) but if you worry that you are giving too much, I would not worry :)

In Philadelphia, we pay our house sitter $40 per night. We have 1 dog.

I pay $25. per day to have a employee/friend stay overnight and watch my dog and 2 cats, check mail, take messages and handle all else that may arise - he had to get the furnace people in to get the house heated one year in mid winter.

We also pay him 50. each way (in our car) to drop and pick us up at the airport. Quite a bargain to have that peace of mind all while having someone interupt their life. Most times we'll give him a bit extra or also bring him back something nice.
We're close to newport RI btw.

good grief, some young person escapes their roommates and stays in our deluxe apartment eating the food and drink we leave for them, enjoying the place, and feeding and walking our dog and we should pay them an extra $40 a night? we have a number of people who are happy to stay in our place for nothing in exchange for taking care of the dog. we do it often. we do usually give them a nice gift though.

Unless you have some pimp daddy oceanfront or mountain front abode, pay $20-$40 per day.

Remember, you get what you pay for. Don't be cheap earl.

Our cat requires twice a day visits now that she's o-l-d for which I pay our long time sitter $30/day. This includes plant watering (if necessary) and mail pick up.

A woman who works locally and is widowed stays with our dog/in our house when we are away and charges $ 25 a night, which is about what I would pay for a kennel (south of Boston) - she also takes her lunch hour at our house. - and it's better than a kennel, my pets are where they are happy so it's worth it to me.

when I can't get here I have a college kid who commutes and loves some time out of her parents house, but I also pay her the same amount. they do other things I don't have to do/plann before going away: bring in mail, newspapers, water plants, have fresh milk, juice and a few other items in the kitchen for us when we return, etc.

I don't stock the house w/ food, I let them bring what they want.

This is a co-worker friend or just a co-worker. I think we have to establish whether this is a friendship thing or a business transaction, b/c I would consider them different. I think if it's a friend and she's acting like you are doing her somewhat of a favor, you can fill the house with food etc. and bring a gift from the trip. If it's more a business transaction and she's doing this for some extra money, pay her the going local rate. I wouldn't do both paying and gifts etc.

I hadn't read all the previous answers, but I guess I'm saying what Earl implied. It may also be somewhat dependent on how inconvenienced this co-worker will be. Will she have to be at your home at a certain hour every day to feed them, or are they pretty independent? Have you considered asking her what she'd like???

House-sitting implies that the co-worker will move in & live there in the absence of the owner.

I agree that it makes a difference whether this is a friendly or a business deal. If this is a friend, I think stocking the house & bringing back a gift would suffice. A business arrangement requires payment, but no gift.

We had a similar situation when we were still living in Toronto. A friend/co-worker was happy to house-sit for us because she lived in a high-rise apartment building which she felt was very noisy, so the quiet of our residential neighbourhood appealed to her. The first time she stayed, it was only for a few days and she didn't want to be paid. The second time it was for nearly 3 weeks, and she felt comfortable telling me that she would like to be paid, which we felt very OK about - we were confident that she would take excellent care of the 2 cats, the house, the garden, etc. We gave her $300 to cover the 3 weeks and she was very happy with this - and since most professional house/pet sitters in our city would have cost more than that, it worked out well on all sides.

I feel that it is not really necessary to pay the sitter fee in full since she is also getting something here. Most pet sitters don't get to board for free or get food and drinks. Having said that I would still pay her about $100 per week. My friends wouldn't take money for this service but if she is just a coworker and not a good friend, she should be paid something but don't go crazy. :)

$25 per day for 2 cats is the going rate in Seattle, but that's not living in, just (1) 1 hour visit.

Why don't you ask her what she wants to be paid? Even if she says nothing, I would give her something... maybe $200 for the 2 week stay. Even though it's a treat for her, it's a BIG favor for you. Finding a good housesitter can be extremely difficult. I would culture this relationship for the future.

Our neighbors are going to be out of town over the Thanksgiving Holiday period. We are going to take care of their cat (not stay there) during this time. It will require going to their house three - four times a day to feed, clean the box and play with kitty. We are charging nothing. I kind'a figure that is what neighbors are for.

If you are getting a professional house/cat sitter why not ask what they charge. If its just a friend or someone like that and they want to be paid, again ask what they think their services are worth. If they would indicate no payment necessary you then could use your own judgement and pay a token amount to off set any minor expenses they may incur and still have a few dollars left over.... As was noted some just would like a change of scenery and the perks they get living in someone elses place.

I have a housesitter that I use. I pay her between $100-$300 depending on the length of the visit. As she is working full-time plus going to school, all I ask her is that she sleep there at night, feed the critters and bring in the mail. The rest of the day is up to her, she's welcome to stay during the day, but she's not required.

I also bring her a nice gift upon my return. I don't stock the fridge because she chooses to bring her own food.

The one other thing I do is to stock my Netflix queue with latest releases and let her watch and send them back as she desires. That way if she is "hanging" around the house, she has some entertainment.

It may seem like a "win/win" situation but please don't forget, this person is taking on a HUGE responsibility as would become enormously apparent if something HAPPENED to one or both of those cats or to the house.

i agree you shouldn't be cheap as this person is giving you an enormous amount of peace of mind. How valuable THAT is only you can determine.

I paid my housesitter $30 per day, and upon later reflection, for the peace of mind I rec'd, I did not pay the dear young man enough. Wish I'd paid $50 per day.

I also have a good friend who housesat for friends who went to Europe last year and was paid $25 a day. She grumbled that it wasn't really enough. Keep in mind it can be a big inconvenience for people to uproot their lives to care for your pet(s), however nice your house is, and when you're paying many thousands for a trip, this may not be the place to cheap out.


I pay drop in housesitters $20 per visit, so at 3 visits a day it comes to $60.

it really does depend on the particular situation. i use to house sit alot when i still lived with my folks. 95% of the time i was happy to do it for free (most times the fridge/freezer were stocked for my use). it was benefiting both of us - they had the sense of security and i got some freedom. this was mostly for close friends or family.
on one occassion, a co-worker heard that i house sat sometimes and asked me to do hers. it was not a comfortable situation - their house was so cluttered you couldn't even find a place to relax and her dog and cat were not friendly at all. it was a very long week and in that situation, i think being paid would have been appropriate. i just didn't have the heart to say no to her.

cesta, pet sitters still have to pay rent somewhere.

Plan to pay her at least $20/day which is what it would cost (minimum) to board the cats. That along with the housesitting, bringing in mail, watering plants etc. is worth at least that amount, especially since it will mean you won't have to feel so much pressure about bringing a gift back if it was to be considered payment.
Sometimes I've also given gift certificates to a favourite shop or restaurant in addition to the payment.

Whenever we took a trip, we always left a written permission slip to "authorize" up to $300 vet bills per cat in case of an emergency. Fortunately, the situation has never come up.

As someone who's frequently cat sit for a coworker of mine, $30/day is too much!

I did it for <b>free</b>. It was a favor, afterall. Didn't have to stay overnight, but they said I could if I'd wanted. I checked in twice a day.

That said, this fall we're vacationing in Hawaii and my brother in law has said he could dog sit for us. We'd want him to stay overnight. We don't plan to pay him (my husband doesn't think it's necessary) but I offered $20/day, with stocked kitchen (he likes to cook), and Netflix galore (he doesn't own a TV).

What all these various replies are showing (in my opinion) are you really need to ask your house-sitter what she wants!

I haven't had a friend housesit, but I have had them feed my pet 1x a day and I usually pay about 10 bucks a day, since they know I am on a budget.

I agree with Suze: ask her what she wants. In my little world there are many, many young people who are delighted to get away from their roommates and stay in a (nicer than their) home with some free food and nice tv, etc. Also, there are usually lower paid assistants, receptionists, etc. who appreciate a bit of extra $$ - and a chance to live in a diffent environment. For them I usually pay $25 or so.

Wow--thanks for all the input! She told me she I didn't need to pay her anything, but I agree, the piece of mind she giving us while we're gone is priceless. Plus, we travel alot and if this works out, I'd love to use her again. I will definitely ask her what she would like to have the house stocked with and have planned to do the Netflix thing. I'm planning on $300 for the 2 weeks. Maybe I'm still being cheap, but if some of you are paying $40 a day for a housesitter, how can you afford to go to Europe:)?

Tamiandtoto - I don't think $300 is cheap at all for 2 weeks. Especially when you add in the stocked fridge, movies, etc. I'll add that because my housesitter doesn't eat my food (I've offered and bought stuff she likes, but she doesn't - most likely she feels uncomfortable), I give her the money in cash before I leave. That way she's got money for delivery, etc. if she would like. I also leave a credit card with a limit of $300 for pet emergencies.

Hi, We live in rural Pennsylvania. For the last two years, we have been paying $50.00 per day for a stay in guy to watch the house and take care of the animals. We stock the frig and buy whatever he wants to eat and drink. He works but comes straight home to the house and stays all night. He also talks to the animals and plays with them. Prior to him we paid $40.00 per night and that guy quit because he said it wasn't enough money. We live in a nice house with wireless, tvs throughout the house and plenty of conveniences.

We just hired a new pet sitter who is probably a bargain. She came once a day and fed 2 cats. The cats come and go via their own entrance/exit so no cat box is involved in their care. She raised and lowered the shades, watered the plants , took the garbage cans out to the street and back and brought in our mail. We paid her $20/day. It would be the same should the cats need meds or such. I was afforded GREAT peace of mind knowing my &quot;boys&quot; were being watched over and the house kept an eye on.

I must be really cheap or our house sitter really likes staying at our house.
I pay her $10/day, she gets to drive our newish car (her's always breaks down and has no a/c - a must in Tx), she can drink our wine/beer/vodka, I stock up the fridge and pantry with her fave foods, order her must-see dvds...and she gets away from her roommates.

$10. a day and all the booze she can handle :S- what happens if she passes out on the kitty or forgets to turn the burners off? Yes, you do get what you pay for.

Boy... some people are sting/cheap. The person who pays the widow and says he doesn't leave any food, and the other person who said I just let them stay at their home and eat their food(big deal) and you don't pay a thing and they're happy with that(are you saying they don't like living their own home so being at your house is worth it including taking care of your pet?). Even if you are friends it would be considerate to kick down some cash since you would have to pay a business if you had no one else to do it so you can go on vacation. All I can say cheap cheap and inconsiderate.

Lastly if the person who's sitting doesn't need the money of course its ok, but nowadays more people could use some extra cash. So keep that on mind.

Uh, I think this has been long settled as the original post is from 2006.